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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26508853">Kitchen Mischief</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/JJPoppit06/pseuds/JJPoppit06'>JJPoppit06</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Tidbits of Hannibal Lecter and Will Graham [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Hannibal (TV), Hannibal Lecter Series - All Media Types</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe, Baking, Fluff, Fluff and Crack, Fluff and Humor, Hannibal Lecter Being Hannibal Lecter, Humor, M/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 02:47:39</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,339</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26508853</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/JJPoppit06/pseuds/JJPoppit06</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It’s Christmas eve and Abigail and will have been in the kitchen all day baking- what could go wrong when Hannibal arrives home from his last meeting of the Year.</p>
<p>or Will and Abigail figure out why Hannibal doesn’t bake.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Will Graham &amp; Abigail Hobbs, Will Graham &amp; Abigail Hobbs &amp; Hannibal Lecter, Will Graham &amp; Hannibal Lecter, Will Graham/Hannibal Lecter</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Tidbits of Hannibal Lecter and Will Graham [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1927339</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>41</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. A long Day</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>A day spent eating, walking the dogs, and some fun in the kitchen.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Will awoke with an itch in his limbs, an itch in his soul. He turned over to the other side of the bed, where Hannibal should have been, but wasn’t. He rubbed his eyes just to make sure he wasn’t blind- <em> nope still not there. </em> Will pulled the covers off himself and picked up his phone from the night stand, <em> 10:00 AM. </em> He saw an unread text notification from Hannibal, it read; ‘ <em> hey, Love, last minute meeting with my supervisors at the clinic, i’ll be home later tonight, love you.’ </em> It was sent at 7 AM, <em> very fitting for Hannibal, </em>Will thought. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Abigail, are you home?” Will called out, walking down the hallway in his Christmas pyjamas. “In the Dining Room.” Abigail called back. She had gotten up just as Hannibal was leaving, she was able to steal a small hug before he left. Will found her sitting at the dining table with a warm plate of breakfast, scrambled eggs, sausage and some vegetables. Will smiled at Hannibal's creation. Abigail saw him looking, “There’s a plate for you in the fridge.” She said with a smile, nodding her head in the direction of the Kitchen. Will have her a kiss on the head before walking away to get his breakfast.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“How was your day out yesterday?” Will asked sitting down at the table, with his heated breakfast. “It was good, I got to see the Elephants, it was amazing, they were so gentle. Charlie was afraid of them though,” she twisted her face, “he liked the baby elephants, it was so funny, the elephants pulled him onto the ground with their trunks, and they all hugged him.” Will smiled at Abigail, warmth filling his heart, “So you had a good time then, huh?” Abigail smiled, “A great Time.” She corrected.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After breakfast Will and Abigail decided to go for a walk with all the dogs, Winston was the first to jump at the chance, it was cold, and snowy outside, so they decided on only bringing Winston, he was the only dog that was keen. Once outside, he ran loose into the snowy ground, darting in and out of the trees, Winston had always loved the snow.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Will and Abigail weren’t far behind, trudging through the thick snow was a good work out. Will put his arm around Abigail trying to keep her warm, they snuggled closer in their coats. “What do you want to do today?” Will asked, watching winston. “I really wanna’ bake.” Abigail said, looking up at will. “Abigail, that’s such a great idea, we could make some christmas cookies.” he smiled down at her, she looked back up at him.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Will and Abigail’s attention was stolen when Winston shot out of the forest line, barking and screaming, something was chasing him. Will looked at Winston worriedly he couldn’t see what he was running away from, but for Winston to run like this, it had to be something bad. Before he could stop her, Abigail took off running as fast as she could. Will ran after her.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Abigail reached Winston first, he barked at her, frightened, she tried to calm him down, but he wouldn’t settle. Once he reached the pair, he took a look at Winston, making sure he wasn’t hurt, “Do you see any injuries?” Will asked Abigail, “No, I don’t. Why would he run like that?” She asked. Will shook his head, “Maybe it was a wolf?” Will knelt down to check Winston's stomach. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Will toppled over in the snow laughing maniacally, wheezing and sputtering out, “look at his stomach,” Will said through his laughter. Abigail knelt down and looked underneath him, “A squirrel?” Abigail couldn’t believe what she saw. A squirrel had clamped down onto Winstons fur, it looked at her with beady eyes, Winston kept barking. “How do we get it off?” She asked through her laughter. Will got up from the snow and knelt back down next to Winston, who still hadn’t stopped his barking. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Right, let’s try to pull it off.” Will said, he slowly put his hands out underneath winstons stomach, he grabbed the squirrel with both hands, it squirmed in his grip. He pulled the squirrel, trying to free it from winstons fur. After a few more tugs the squirrel realised its grip from Winston's fur. With a small laugh, will place the squirrel down on the ground. It scurried away, back to the forest. Will petted Winston's head, “How many times do I have to tell you, the squirrels don’t want a friend.” He said as he stood up. Will walked over to Abigail and gave her a hand up from the snow, “he’s done this before?” She asked. Will nodded, “many times.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>— —</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Before we start, we should make sure we have enough ingredients.” Abigail said, walking over to the cupboard, “good Idea” Will said, going through to the gingerbread cookie recipe in his book. “This one good?” He held up the page for Abigail to see the picture of the perfectly iced cookies. She nodded vigorously, then slumped her shoulders sadly, “ours aren't gonna’ look like that, maybe we should try something easier?” Will scrunched his nose up at the thought, “No, we can do it. Come on, you gotta’ help me.” She walked over to him looking down at the recipe, “okay, but if we mess up, don’t blame it on me.” Will smiled, “never, sweetheart.” Abigail smiled at the nickname, she was very fond of it, it made her feel loved.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Do we have everything?” Will asked taking bowls and measuring utensils out of the cupboards and drawers. “Yep.” Abigail said. After a few minutes they had the dough ready, it said in the recipe to let it rest for an hour in the fridge, so Will and Abigail decided to make the icing as they waited for the dough to rest. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What colours?” Abigail asked, looking in the pantry. “Red and green, obviously.” Will said, mixing up the icing sugar and some butter. “Can we do blue as well?” Abigail asked. Will raised his eyebrow curiously. “I just really like the colour blue.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Okay, but then we do purple as well.” Will said. This time it was Abigail’s turn to be curious, “Purple is Hannibal’s favourite colour.” Will said, mixing the icing to a smooth consistency. Abigail pulled Red, Green, Blue and Purple from the box of food colouring and placed them on the bench.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“We need four extra bowls, could you get them, Abi?” Abigail nodded, walking over to the cupboard. She placed them down on the bench, and watched as well placed equal amounts of the icing into the bowls. They added the different colours to the icing, mixing it through. Will and Abigail stood back and looked at their masterpieces, “I told you we’d be fine.” Will said wrapping his arm around her. “yeah, yeah,” she mused, “we haven’t cooked them yet though.” she said worriedly. “oh, we aren't <em> that </em> bad at baking are we?” Abigail raised her eyebrows, “on my birthday you almost burnt down the kitchen trying to make me a cake, yes, we are that bad.” she smiled playfully. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Will slid his hand in the open flour bag, scooping some up into the palm of his hand, Abigail's eyes darted open and shot open wide, <em> oh, no. </em>She tried to run away, but a fist full of flowers found its way on her face and over her hair. She held her mouth open, gobsmacked. “Two can play this game.” She said. She jumped over the counter to the bag of cocoa powder, she poured a heap into her hand and threw it at Will. It hit him straight in the face, with impeccable accuracy. He let out a cough, cocoa powder in his lungs didn’t feel good. He let out a big laugh, “ready for another?” Will put his hand back into the flour bag, and was about to throw another at Abigail, when he heard footsteps at the front door. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Abigail, Will?” They both heard Hannibal call from the front of the house. “Are you home?” Will and Abigail shared a look, they were both frozen, ‘What do we do?’ Will mouthed. She ran over to Will and pulled him down to the ground, just as Hannibal walked into the kitchen. They were hidden by the kitchen counter, they both listened carefully as they heard Hannibal's footsteps walk away. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Both their shoulders slumped in relief, they got up from the floor thinking they were safe. “So, this is what you two do all day when I’m not around?” Hannibal said, looking at the sight in front of him, <em> delinquents, </em>Hannibal thought. “Umm, we’re baking.” Abigail said guiltily, wiping away some flour from her face. Hannibal smiled, “I can see that,” Hannibal said.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Icing Theif</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Mysterious things start happening in the Lecter household, bowls are being licked clean and Will and Abigail seem to have misplaced there icing, wonder where it hopped off to. Oh, and where has Hannibal gone?</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“Both of you, go have a shower now, before it gets all over the house.” They both nodded in agreement, and walked away from the kitchen and up the stairs to their respective rooms. Hannibal waited for the showers to start running before he walked over to the kitchen counter. He eyeballed all the colours of icing, taking in the sweat smell that had filled the kitchen, it was a heavenly feeling he couldn’t explain. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>He went over to the biggest bowl first, it was empty with only a little icing left on the side of the bowl, the spatula had a lot of icing left on it, covered in sugary goodness. Hannibal picked it up, sliding a finger across the rubber end, he collected a blob of icing onto his finger, he placed it on his tongue, the sweetness filling his taste buds. The vanilla essence was just the right amount, and the icing was so smooth, <em> Will and Abigail did well</em>, he thought, taking another blob of icing onto his finger. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Hannibal listened carefully as he ate, Will was still in the shower, Abigail had turned on her Tv, watching a show. Hannibal could never control himself around baked goods, it was one of those things he only rarely indulged in, he had almost finished the scraps in the big bowl when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. Hannibal quickly grabbed the bowl of purple icing and a spoon before he left quickly down the hallway. He found his way to the guest bedroom, where he sat down at the small desk, with the door shut.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It was so thoughtful of Will to make his favourite colour of icing, it was such a sweet gesture. Hannibal looked down at the deep purple colour, it added nothing to the flavour or texture, but it did add the feeling. Will had made it for him, <em>Will did it for him</em>. Hannibal put his spoon into the bowl, he took a small spoonful into his mouth. He let it sit on his tongue, savouring the rich sweetness. Hannibal closed his eyes, he swallowed softly, before taking up another spoonful.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>— —</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Will had just finished his shower when he heard a knock at the door, “It’s Abigail.” Will smiled, “Just a sec’, Love.” Will walked over to his closet and pulled out his bathrobe, he pulled it over himself and tied the tie before opening his bedroom door. “What’s up, Abi?” He asked standing before her. She had a ‘are you serious’ look on, she was holding the big icing bowl, it was clean, the spatula inside was clean too. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Will quirked an eyebrow, “yes?” he questioned. She rolled her eyes, “look.” She pointed at the clean dishes. Will wasn’t sure what to say, “Okay, can you just tell me what’s going on?” Will asked. She sighed as if it were obvious, “Did you lick the icing out of the bowl? I wanted to do that.” She said sadly. Will shook his head, “no, I didn’t. Well, you can lick the other bowls of icing once we decorate the cookies. They should be done resting, let me get dressed and I’ll help you make them.” She nodded, walking away.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>— —</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Abi?” Will called out to her, he leaned against the door frame that led into the living room, she was sitting on the couch reading a book. She pulled her head away, and looked at Will, “oh, are we gonna shape the cookies now?” Will smiled, “uh-hu, yeah, c’mon.” She jumped up in excitement, Will led her into the kitchen. Will pulled out the Gingerbread dough from the fridge, and placed it on the counter. He began to make some room, most of the ingredients were already put away, <em> probably by Hannibal, </em>Will smiled at the thought. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>He moved the empty bowls and used utensils into the sink, he would do the dishes later. Will went over to the oven and turned it onto the required temperature. He walked over to Abigail who had already started to roll out half of the dough. Will picked up the Red and Green icing bowls and put them opposite the oven. He went back for the Blue and Purple icing bowls, but was surprised to see that the purple icing wasn’t where he had left it.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Abi, did you move the Purple icing bowl?” Will asked, putting the Blue icing next to the others. “No, why?” She asked, rolling out the dough even further. “It’s not here.” Will said. “What do you mean?” She looked up from her dough. “I mean, it’s not here.” Will said. “Where could it be? Did Hannibal move it? Maybe he put it in the fridge.” She walked over to the fridge and opened the door, she looked through the fridge but couldn’t find anything. “Nope.” she said thoughtfully, after a while she went back to rolling the dough, unbothered. Will however wasn’t so relaxed about the idea.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I made that icing specifically for Hannibal, I don’t understand how it could have disappeared.” Will said, thinking allowed. “We can find it later, come help me with the dough.” Abigail said. “No, I’m gonna’ look around the kitchen, Abi. You’re okay there on your own, right?” Will asked, caringly. “Yeah, I’ll be fine.” Will didn’t reply. Already absorbed into his task.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He looked through the cupboards, the drawers, the fridge (again). He looked in the High shelves, pantry, he even looked into the freezer and still couldn’t find the icing. It was gone, it had vanished. “I’m going to ask Hannibal if <em> he knows </em> where the icing is.” Will said accusingly. No doubt Hannibal had taken it to add his own <em> special </em>touches. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Hannibal? Where are you?” Will called out. He walked upstairs to their bedroom, he knocked on the door, “Love, are you there?” Will slowly opened the door, thinking he might be asleep after a long day. But the bed was empty, the shower wasn’t on, and he wasn’t at his desk. Will was on another hunt. </p>
<p> </p>
<p>Will went out to Hannibal’s <em> workstation, </em>It was a small standalone building on the outside of the house, this was where their nutrients came from, this was Hannibal’s home. Will knocked on the door, he waited a little while for an answer, but none came. He went in on his own accord checking every room, he went down into the cellar as well, Hannibal was nowhere to be found.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>— —</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Did you find him?” Abigail asked as Will walked into the kitchen. He shook his head, “No, he wasn’t even at his workshop.” Will said. He looked at the counter, two perfectly even sheets of dough were rolled out on the counter, Will smiled. “You did so good.” He smiled at her. “Thank you, Gray.” Will’s heart smiled at the nickname, he loved it so much. It came from his last name, it fitted him well, she first called him it almost a year ago, it just stuck. “Do we have cookie cutters?” Will asked. Abigail nodded, “yeah, I already got some out from the cupboard.” She pushed a pile towards Will, Snowman, a christmas tree and a wreath shape. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>They spent almost ten minutes cutting shapes and placing them on the oven trays. Will cut his last shape and placed it onto the oven tray, before placing two trays into the oven, there were two more trays still on the bench, but the oven could only fit two. “We’re doing pretty good so far aren't we?” Will said, smiling proudly at their progress, the shapes on the tray smiled back. “Yes we are, don’t jinx it please.” Looking at him with a knowing look. “It was one time, you’re never gonna let it go are you?” ge put his hands on his hips. She shook her head with a playful smile.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The oven dinged, letting them know that the first batch was ready to be taken out. Will put on a pair of oven mitts and pulled both trays out of the oven. He put them down on the counter, admiring their creation. He placed the other two trays into the oven. Abigail and Will looked at the golden brown cookies with a lustful eagerness, they would be great to eat now, but not as good as they will be later. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“We should find Hannibal, I want to show him what we made, he could help us decorate.” She ran out of the kitchen and went over to the door that led to the basement, sometimes she found him there tinkering on old gadgets, or finding a specific book. Will walked out of the kitchen trying to think of a place he hadn’t looked yet, </span>
  <em>
    <span>the guest bedroom, </span>
  </em>
  <span>he thought, Hannibal sometimes liked to draw in that room.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>— —</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Hannibal’s ears pricked up at the sound of footsteps coming close, they were Will’s, the soft pitter-patter in between hard thumps. The spoon stayed frozen in his mouth as he heard Will’s footsteps stop at the door. “Hannibal, are you in there, Love?” Hannibal heard Will's voice as the door slowly was pushed open. Will and Hannibal eyes locked. Will was unable to fathom what he was seeing.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Hannibal, what are you doing?” Will asked, trying to hold his laughter back. Hannibal thought for a moment, he pulled the spoon out from his lips, “I’m taste testing.” Will couldn’t hold back his laughter anymore- he used the door frame for support, as his laughter shook through his body. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“Did you find him?” Abigail’s voice came from behind Will. She turned to see what Will was laughing at, she watched the sight before her. Hannibal looked like a deer in headlights, Will weak with laughter. “You took the icing.” Abigail pointed to the bowl of icing, she stepped past Will, picking up the bowl from the desk, “it’s almost gone!” she said, shocked. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Hannibal looked at her guilty as ever, “You did a very good job, Love. It was yummy.” Hannibal said, taking the bowl out of her hands, he whipped the side of the bowl with his fingers getting the last bit out of the bowl. “Apparently too yummy.” Abigail huffed out. Will’s fit of laughter finally ended, and he stood up properly. He walked over to Hannibal, and sat next to him. He noticed some stray icing on the side of Hannibal's mouth, Will whipped it away with his finger, and tasted it himself, “it is yummy.” Hannibal smiled, “That it is.” Abigail walked out of the room in a </span>
  <em>
    <span>‘i’m over this’ </span>
  </em>
  <span>kinda way.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>Will leaned in and kissed Hannibal gently, tasting the sweetness on his tongue. He looked at Hannibal with a loving smile, “Your tongue has gone purple.” Will smiled, kissing Hannibal again. The moment of peace was broken by Abigail's screams. Will and Hannibal jumped up running to the kitchen as quickly as they could.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>The kitchen was filled with smoke, the alarm was blaring like crazy and Abigail looked down sadly at the other two trays of cookies, “they’re burnt to crisps.” She said, waving smoke away from her face. Will walked over to the windows and opened them up to let the smoke out, and fresh air in. “I’m getting some déjà vu.” Abigail said, glaring over at will, “me too.” Hannibal chimed in. “Oh, hush up. Look at the other trays, those are great.” Will said, bringing them over. “They are good, but… you did burn fifty percent of what you made.” Hannibal said, taking the trays and setting them down on the counter.</span>
</p>
<p> </p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s alright, Darling, next time i’ll be here to help.” Hannibal said. Will fell into Hannibal's strong frame, defeated. Hannibal held him close into his chest, and kissed him on the crown of his head. Hannibal tried to sneak a snowman cookie from the tray, but Will smacked his hand away. “That’s enough taste testing for one day, isn’t it love?” Will and Abigail laughed at Hannibal's childishness. </span>
</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Hannibal?</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Summary for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
            <p>Hannibal gets up to a lot more mischeif, and even gets a little too carried away. Abigail and Will can’t help but laugh.</p><p>Or Hannibal is on crack, and Abigail and Will have to deal with it.</p>
          </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Abigail awoke in a fright, she couldn’t quite pin what had woken her up, maybe the dogs, but then when she listened closer she could hear footsteps and chatter downstairs. Abigail tried to put her mind at ease, but when another bang followed by rustling came to her ears, she jumped into action. Abigail quietly climbed out of bed and made her way down the hallway to Hannibal’s and Will’s bedroom.</p><p> </p><p>She opened the door quietly and slid inside before whoever was downstairs could see her. She walked over to Will, he was lying in his bed asleep, he shook him awake, “Someones in the house,” she said in a low whisper, her voice was calm, but on the inside she was freaking out. “What?” Will asked sternly, rubbing his eyes awake. “There’s someone downstairs,” Abigail said, she looked over to the other side of the bed, Hannibal was gone, crinkled sheets in place of his body. </p><p> </p><p>“Where’s Hannibal?” Abigail asked worriedly, “did he go to sleep with you tonight?” She asked. Will nodded, “He did, is he the one downstairs?” Will asked, he wasn’t at all worried that there was an Intruder, Hannibal and Will had a very good security system; six, well trained dogs. “I don’t know, I heard a lot of banging, at one point I heard three voices. I really think someone’s down there.” She said it with so much conviction, Will had to believe her.</p><p> </p><p>He jumped into action, climbing out of bed and quietly walking over to the safe, hidden in the bookcase, that’s where he kept his gun. He pulled it out, and put a full magazine of bullets into the gun. He walked over to the door quietly, “Stay in here, Abigail. Don’t leave unless Hannibal or I open the door, we’ll knock three times to let you know it’s us, stay, Abigail, I mean it.” His voice was low and stern, Abigail had the bravery of a lion and would put herself in tight positions to save others, Will didn’t need her to do it for him.</p><p> </p><p>He left without saying another word, shutting and locking the door behind him. He held the gun low at his side with two hands, the safety was off, so he had to be careful. Will walked down the stairs slowly, making sure no sound came from the steps. He could hear voices, three different ones, husky and male, another light and wispy and another close to the sound of a trombone, very deep. He tried to make out what they were saying, but he couldn’t make out any words. He saw a light coming from the living room, he could only make out one figure, tall and broad, they were moving up and down, side to side and that’s when he noticed the low hum of a vacuum cleaner. </p><p> </p><p>Will grew more confused in that moment, <em> are they a cleaning company, </em>Will thought, grasping for straws. Will walked into the living room slowly, he held the gun up straight, “Put your hands up and don’t move!” Will said boldly. The intruder stopped in their tracks, only the lamp was on, he couldn’t see their face, so Will reached over and turned the living room light on. He was bewildered by what he saw, Hannibal was dressed like a housemaid, though underneath the dust apron was a dapper suit, one of Hannibal's favourites to wear, he had one of his arms up in the air holding a duster, and the other hand was busy gripping the handle of a vacuum cleaner.</p><p> </p><p>“Hannibal, what is going on?” Hannibal turned around to face Will with a playful smile, “I wanted the house to be spotless for when Abigail wakes up, it’s Christmas after all.” He said so casually, he continued to vacuum taking no notice of Will’s expression. Will looked around the room a little more to see everything, the other voices were coming from the tv, a cooking show was playing. Everything else was perfectly spotless, except for one thing, the couch was flipped over, lying upside down on the floor. “Hannibal, what happened to the sofa?” He asked, turning the safety back on, putting the gun down on the table. Hannibal shrugged his shoulders and said simply, “It got in my way.” That was when Will hit his breaking point, and crouched over himself in a fit of laughter. </p><p> </p><p>Hannibal continued to clean, not paying attention to Will’s existence. Once Will had calmed down, he ran up the stairs, and knocked on the door, three times before entering, “Abi? False alarm, it was just Hannibal, I think he might have gotten into the edibles again.” Will said with a small laugh. Abigail came out from a small nook in the back of the bedroom, her shoulders slumped in exhaustion, “really? I thought we hid them well enough this time.” She came out of the room following Will, “How bad is it?” She asked, just as they reached the living room. Will shook his head, “look for yourself.” He stood away, leaning against the door frame as Abigail walked through.</p><p> </p><p>“Oh, sweetheart, what are you doing up? Santa won’t come if you aren't asleep, remember.” Hannibal said in a motherly tone. Abigail smiled at his childishness, “it’s four in the morning Hannibal, why would you take edibles now?” she asked, holding her own arms into a hug. “Oh, it was super easy to find them, so once I did, I thought I deserved a little treat.” He said, Hannibal got down on his hands and knees and started scrubbing a spot in the carpet with a hard brush. “How did you find it so easily, we hid them in the chimney?” Abigail asked, flabbergasted. “Oh, I’ve been wired all night.” Hannibal admitted. “What do you mean?” Will asked, walking up closer. “Well, a whole bowl of icing is a lot of sugar……” Hannibal trailed off, Will knew that he was hiding something, “What did you do?” Will asked.</p><p> </p><p>Hannibal stopped in his tracks, “nothing.” he replied too quickly, Will and Abigail were already on the case. Abigail walked over to the kitchen, and Hannibal jumped into action, putting himself as a wall between her and the kitchen door. “Don’t go in there.” Hannibal said. Will ran around to the hallway, there was a second door into the kitchen, and when he entered he couldn’t believe what he saw. </p><p> </p><p>Pots and pans, bowls, spoons, oven trays, measuring equipment and an old standing mixer were all strewn over the kitchen in a heap of a mess, there were patches of flower and sugar that had spilled, and the sink was filed to the brim with old dishes that had different colour residue on the insides. There was an overwhelming sweat smell coming from every corner of the kitchen, it filled Will's nose to the point it was giving him a headache.</p><p> </p><p>Abigail came in behind Will and had the same expression he did, a <em> ‘what the actual fuck’ </em> seemed about right. “Hannibal, come here right now.” Hannibal came around the corner with the look of a guilty, timid child, “Yes?” He asked. Will titled his head, “come.” he commanded. Hannibal came and stood right next to him, Will put his arm on his back, “What is this, Hannibal?” He said holding his arm out as if presenting the pigsty to Hannibal's eyes. “I tried to bake.” Was all Hannibal said before adding on, “it didn’t go as planned.”</p><p> </p><p>Abigail and Will laughed in unison, both falling into a fit of laughter, unable to fathom how the kitchen ended up so historically messy. “Hannibal, I-I don’t understand how it got this messy.” Abigail mused, she went over to the sink, and looked in, finding seven different bowls, “why did you need so many bowls, what were you even trying to make?” She asked, looking over at him. He bowed his head sheepishly, “I was trying to make the cookies you two made.” Will frowned in confusion, “But, Hannibal, we already made those cookies, why did you make more?” Will asked, going over to the pantry. He looked in trying to find the cookies, they weren’t there.</p><p> </p><p>“Hannibal, where are the cookies Abi and I made?” Will turned looking at Hannibal, he was even more timid now, he was trying to sink into the floor. “For future reference, don’t leave me unattended around baked goods.” He said. “Noted. But, again, Hannibal, what happened to the cookies?” Will asked, Abigail and Will shared a look, not knowing what Hannibal's answer would be. “Umm, I ate them.” Abigail did a double take, “All?” She asked, looking at Hannibal shocked. He nodded, contorting his mouth into a frown. “So that’s why you were trying to bake more cookies- where are they? Can we see them?” Will asked looking over the kitchen counters. </p><p> </p><p>Hannibal didn’t answer for a very long time, Abigail and Will had prod at him for a long time before he started to give in. “Did you burn them? Hannibal it’s alright, just tell me what happened.” Will said, taking Hannibal's hand. “They didn’t make it to the oven.” Hannibal said guiltily, he crossed his arms trying to hide his bulging stomach, he was so full, he wanted to throw up, and then he did. </p><p> </p><p>It went all over Will’s shirt and some splattered on the floor. “Here.” Abigail said, handing him a wet tea towel. Will started to wipe himself down, when Hannibal erupted again, he turned around just in time for the puke to land in the sink, he wrenched out a cough, as the contents of his stomach excreted itself from his body. Will and Abigail rubbed his back trying to soothe Hannibal, he threw up about four times before he felt his stomach settle.</p><p> </p><p>— —</p><p> </p><p>Abigail, Will and Hannibal were snuggling up together on the now upright couch, keeping each other warm as they listened to the fire crackle. Abigail was the first to speak, “So, no more beating around the bush, what happened to the cookies you made?” She turned her head up to look at him, he looked down at her with a smile. “Like I said before, they didn’t make it to the oven.” Abigail furrowed her eyebrows, “so did you miss-measure? Or what?” She asked, getting annoyed. Hannibal shook his head no, “I-I, I umm….” Hannibal had a lump in his throat. “Spit it out, Love. C’mon, why is it we never see you baking?” Will asked, interested more than ever.</p><p> </p><p>“I eat all of the ingredients, I make the dough- eat it before it gets to the oven, you know what happens to the icing.” Hannibal's confession fell into open ears, but once it reached their heads, they were completely confused. “Is that why you threw up, because you ate the dough?” Abi asked, looking up at him. He nodded, “Yep.” Abigail  and Will couldn’t help their laughter, and soon Hannibal was laughing with them. </p><p> </p><p>“How long has this been going on?” Will asked between a wheeze. “Ever since I was a kid, I've never been able to stop myself. Once my Sister was making a batch of Muffins, I stole the batter and ate all of it while hiding in my closet.” Hannibal said, smiling at the memory. Will and Abigail started laughing again, filling the walls of the house with their audible happiness.</p><p> </p><p>— — </p><p> </p><p>Hannibal woke up to the comforting sound of Will’s heart beat in his ear, after all of the commotion last night, they had all decided that it would be best if they all went back to bed for some well needed sleep. He listened to the soft murmur of will’s arteries, unable to release his fixation. His head was tucked into Will’s shoulder, Will’s arm was holding Hannibal tightly, not wanting to let go. “Are you awake?” asked Hannibal, his voice was extremely husky in the morning. A very pleasant sound for Will to wake up to, “I am now,” Will said, looking down at Hannibal, kissing him on the top of his head.</p><p> </p><p>“Sorry, I didn’t mean t-” Will cut him off, “Don’t be sorry, waking up to your voice is a blessing.” He hugged him closer, “never be sorry.” He said, kissing him again on his head. Hannibal breathed deeply, smiling at the fuzzy-butterfly feeling he got in his stomach. “Go back to sleep, I’m gonna wrap some presents.” Will said, sitting up, Hannibal moved over onto his pillow. Before Will could escape, he pulled his arm and tugged him back into the bed, giving a soft kiss on Will’s lips. He felt Will smile at the gesture. Will freed himself from Hannibal's grasp, and pulled his jersey over himself, he walked over to the door and blew Hannibal a kiss before leaving.</p><p> </p><p>Will walked over the hall to Abigail’s room, he knocked gently on the door, “Abi?” He asked quietly. “Yeah?” Abigail asked groggily from inside her room. “Come down stairs, meet me in the kitchen.” Will whispered. He walked away down the stairs to the kitchen. He went over to the fridge and pulled out Hannibal’s christmas present. Abigail walked into the kitchen with tired eyes, reindeer pyjamas and all. “What’s that?” She asked, pointing at the big bowl set down on the counter. Will smiled proudly at his creation, “Hannibal’s Christmas present; edible cookie dough.” Will said, “you’ve gotta’ help me wrap it.” Abigail smiled, “Definitely.”</p><p> </p><p>— —</p><p> </p><p>“Everyone ready?” Hannibal called out from behind the christmas tree. “Yeah!” Will and Abigail called back in unison. “One, two, three-” Hannibal’s countdown got drowned out by Will and Abigail’s excited cheering, “It looks so good.” Abigail said looking at the multi coloured lights. It had become one of their traditions to turn the lights on the Christmas tree on Christmas day. </p><p> </p><p>“Presents?” Abigail asked, Will and her shared a look, “Hannibal, you’re up first.” Will walked over to the tree picking up one of the presents Abigail And Will had bought together. He handed it to Hannibal, the small box fell neatly into Hannibal’s palms. He undid the wrapping carefully, revealing an engraved wooden box; ‘<em> Hannibal Lecter’ </em> <em> . </em> Hannibal slid his fingers across the indentation, feeling the curves of the letters. He opened the box to find a glinting metal steak knife, he could see his reflection in the beautiful knife. He found his name ‘ <em> Hannibal Lecter’ </em> engraved again into the blade of the knife. He smiled at Will knowingly, and thanked the both of them for their impeccable gift giving.</p><p> </p><p>It was Abigail’s turn next, Hannibal and Will had both pitched in and baught her an excellent and expensive camera. She almost screamed when she realised what it was, she had been wanting one since she was a kid, but she was too young to have a proper camera. Will and Hannibal trusted she was old enough now to take care of it, and use it correctly.</p><p> </p><p>Next, Will. Will hadn’t asked for anything this year, he never was one for the holiday spirit, but he knew Hannibal, and he knew that Hannibal was gonna go all out for him, it <em> was </em>Hannibal Lecter after all. “I have to go get it.” Was all Hannibal said, before leaving outside for his workshop. He was back within a few minutes, with a picnic basket. He placed it at Will’s feet, and then sat back down. He looked over at Abigail, who was holding in all her excitement, she obviously knew what was inside. Will carefully pulled the lid off the basket. He looked down, surprised to see a little Beagle puppy poke it’s head out into the world. Will smiled down at the dog, lifting it up into his arms. “Where did you find him?” Will asked, hugging the little devil closer to his lap. “I didn’t find him, I purchased him… from the pound, he was gonna be euthanized.” </p><p> </p><p>Abigail was losing her patience, she wanted Hannibal to open his last present, “Hannibal, here.” She picked up a huge bag from behind the sofa, and lifted it over to him. “Thank you, Sweetheart.” he took the heavy bag effortlessly, it was light in Hannibal's view. “It’s from Will.” She said smiling. Hannibal nodded, opening the bag up and pulling out a huge lump of what he presumed to be earth clay. Abigail noticed his confusion, “unwrap it.” she said, petting Winston who came over and nuzzled his head into her lap. </p><p> </p><p>As soon as Hannibal opened the wrapper he remembered the signature smell of cookie dough, he breathed it in smiling. But then became confused, “It’s cookie dough. I don’t mean to seem ungrateful, but do you remember what happened last time, I threw up.” Will smiled looking up, “Love, it’s edible cookie dough, there are no eggs, you won’t get food poisoning. Try it.” he said watching Hannibal closely.</p><p> </p><p>Hannibal picked up a piece of it onto his finger and placed it onto his tongue. Vanilla Bean, one of his favourite flavours, he smiled at the taste. He looked up at Will, “Thank you, Darling.” He smiled even brighter, “This is amazing!” He said, taking a bigger clump and eating it aggressively. Will and Abigail began to laugh.</p>
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